A Firefly Films Production
Produced & Directed by Cara Biasucci

Co-produced by Kristine Hopkins & M. Schmeidt Produções

"This is the one of the best films I've ever seen on birth in any country."
"Este é um dos melhores filmes que eu já vi, no mundo inteiro."
--Robbie Davis-Floyd, Ph.D., Author of Birth as an American Rite of Passage

"A beautiful documentary...it is very strong and represents a discussion of fundamental importance to women and Brazilian families in general."
"Um belo documentario...é muito forte e apresenta um discussão de fundamental importância."
--Mario Borgneth, TV Cultura

"This excellent documentary...is a powerful, accessible, and gentle approach to pregnancy and childbirth that will be of interest to those who study women's issues, sociology, parenting, medicine, South American culture, and the Portuguese language."
"Este excelente documentário...tem uma abordagem poderosa, acessível e delicada sobre gravidez o nascimento, e será de interesse para quem estuda questões relativas a mulher, sociologia, maternidade e parternidade, medicina, cultura da America do Sul e a língua portuguesa."
--Sean Patrick Knowlton, University of Colorado at Boulder/Educational Media Reviews

In private hospitals in Brazil the cesarean rate averages 70%, even though research shows the majority of women prefer natural birth. Doctors attribute the high cesarean rate to patient demand, when in fact cesareans are more convenient and lucrative for doctors. Touching and humorous accounts of childbirth from women and their doctors reveal the pressures that stimulate the gross overuse of cesareans in Brazil.

Nos hospitais particulares brasileiros, a taxa de cesárea é, em média, de 70%, apesar das pesquisas indicarem que a mairoria das mulheres prefere o parto normal. Os médicos atribuem a elevada taxa de cesáreas à demanda das pacientes, mas, de fato, as cesáreas são mais convenientes e lucrativas para os medicos. Relatos emocionantes e bem-humorados sobre partos, dados por mulheres e seus médicos, revelam as pressões que estimulam o uso exagerado de cesáreas no Brasil.

Made possible by the support of THE WILLIAM AND FLORA HEWLETT FOUNDATION

Filmed in Porto Alegre, Brazil
In Portuguese with English subtitles
52 minutes

This documentary video is based on the research of Kristine Hopkins, Ph.D.
&
The Multi-Center Prospective Study of Cesarean Delivery and Postpartum Sterilization in Brazil, Joseph E. Potter, Prinicipal Investigator